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Liora's Chicken Soup

We first tasted this soup at her home one evening, and then it was brought to me when I was very sick. It has since become a favorite both for the taste and for the healing qualities. Over time, this has evolved to yield Pav Bhaji and pulled chicken from the leftovers. See the Cultures Capsule for the full story.
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time2 hours 30 minutes
Best to make a day ahead...1 day
CourseMain Course, Soup, Stock
CuisineAmerican, Israeli
Keywordbroth, chicken, matzo ball, soup
Servings8 servings
AuthorLiora

Equipment

  • a large pot
  • tea strainers for bouquet garni helps to keeps herbs contained

Ingredients

  • 4 lbs drumsticks, excess skin removed ~15 drumsticks (or 5-6 lbs chicken bones, traditionally)
  • 1 med. celery root ~1 softball size
  • 1-2 parsnips ~2 cups
  • 6-7 med. carrots ~3 cups
  • 1-2 potatoes ~ 1 russet or 4 medium red
  • 1-2 onions or leeks (or both) ~1 cup
  • 1 full bunch fresh dill sprigs ~1 cup
  • 1 full bunch fresh parsley sprigs ~1 cup
  • 1 inch cube fresh ginger root
  • 5-7 whole peppercorns
  • 1 tbsp salt
  • 1 pinch sugar
  • 12 cups water, estimated

Suggested Accompaniments

  • mini-croutons if you're lucky enough to have an Israeli grocer nearby
  • challah Liora's recipe here

Instructions

Original Recipe

  • In a large pot, arrange herbs at bottom and then chicken + vegetables (all cubed very coarsely -large pieces are fine here). If using bones you can "fill" bones with vegetables to use less room in pot.
  • Barely cover with water (around 11-12 cups).  Let boil and immediately after boil reduce to smallest flame. Spoon out foam as it appears. Leave in very light simmer for about 2-3 hours.
    Separate chicken and vegetables (except onions) into separate containers and strain liquid into its own pot or container. Discard the herbs, peppercorns & ginger, and eat the yummy onions as a side dish.
  • The next day you can spoon out Schmaltz (white layer on top) and keep for other things. If eating on the first day it might be a bit too oily, but the oil seems to be going to the top so try to serve from the bottom of the pot. :)
    Another method is to serve after sifting through a tight strainer with a piece of paper towel on top. 

Meghna K's Updates If You Plan to Make Pav Bhaji & Indian-Spiced Pulled Chicken

  • Prep: if you intend to use the boiled vegetables for Pav Bhaji, put the herbs in large tea strainers to make separating them easier later. See notes below for details.

Notes

And don't forget to turn your soup castaways into two subsequent dishes: the vegetables into pav bhaji and chicken Indian-spiced pulled chicken "tacos." 
We use two or three large tea strainers for our bouquet garni in order to allow us to remove the herbs easily and use the vegetables and chicken in the subsequent recipes.
Of course, if you have leftover chicken bones (or your butcher had some for you), you can use that in place of the drumsticks.  In that case, you could still make pav bhaji.
 
 
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